The Foreign Service Journal, May 2023

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MAY 2023 57 After a second organization failed to raise sufficient funds, the State Department concluded that federal support was required. the ask, and the Trump administration’s Office of Management and Budget sent Congress the first prospective request for appro- priated Department of State funding for the USA Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai. Within the White House, senior presidential adviser Jared Kushner and his chief of staff John Rader advocated for the project and marshalled administration support. As the department pursued federal funding and briefed OMB and congressional staff—my previous American Political Science Association (APSA) congressional fellowship really came in handy!—the Expo Unit made contingency plans and prepara- tions. Expo 2020 Dubai was scheduled to open its doors in less than one year. Other countries had begun construction a year ago; and here we were, going back to the design drawing board. Department leadership leaned into the saddle and supported a series of workshops in Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Dubai with the experiential design firmThinkwell Group and architectural advisers Woods Bagot to identify a creative design and construction program that could still be achieved—if we received the federal money. On Dec. 17, 2019, Congress released its final consolidated spending package; it did not include the anticipated Expo funding. The outlook was gloomy. The State Department released a statement: “U.S. Participation in Expo 2020 Dubai in Jeopardy.” As the then project manager, I went home for the holidays and started thinking about my next assignment. But sometimes Christmas wishes do come true. Less than a month later, on Jan. 15, 2020, the United States announced its